Nail distributor



lower section to the Lipper.

Patented Feb. 11, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFlcs ORIN L. SMITH, OF SWAMPSCOTT, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MA- CHINERY CORPORATION, OFVPATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION' 0F NEW JERSEY NAIL DISTRIBUTOR Application filed October 2, 1926. Serial No. 139,201.

In these Vdistributors it is desired that thev nails shallbe delivered with their ends in a delinite relation, with the points up or down,l

depending upon the direction in which they are to be driven. To obtain this orderly arrangement, the plan disclosed in Letters Patent of the United States No. 1,005,303, Pope, October 10, 1911, is frequently employed. In this mechanism, sections of an inclinednailway are arranged at diferent heights, having alined nail-conveying channels, which are connected by curved portions rising from the Above this curved connecting section and opposite the ends of the upper channels is located a nails reversing device, commonly termed a balancing bar. If the nails are discharged from the upper channels with their heads foremost, the weight of these so influences the courses of the nails that they do not reach the bar, but move without reversal through the intermediate channels into the lower nailwaysection. On the other hand, if the nailsleave the upper section points first, these lighter portions cross the space to the balancing bar,

and then, upon heads leavingthe upper section, these are directed forwardly by the curved channels as they fall from the bar. As a consequence of this, all the nails descend the lower section heads first.

These distributors vmust operate satisfactorily upon nails differing greatly in length, the balancing bar being adjustable toward and from the upper nailway-section, so it may be caused to catch the point of any nail of a range of sizes from the minimum to the maximum before it overbalances. Because it has been found that there is a tendency for longnails to fall sideways across the curved connecting channels beneath the balancing bar, clogging these, it has been customary to somewhat increase the height of the channelwalls at this point to furnish lateral support.

intermediate channels and also clog, the walls are made more divergent, so the channels are wider at the tops, and the short nails travel more freely through them. This, however, aggravates the lateral displacement of the long nails, and it has been difficult to arrive at a relation which will be effective for all lengths. It is an object of my invention to overcome this trouble and hold the long nails upright laterally, while leaving a properly free passage for the short nails. To this end, I space vertically from the lower section of the nailway, members extending over the upper sections and arranged to maintain against lateral 'displacement nails delivered by the upper section and direct them beneath the balancinoF bar. By thus spacing the directing members, the connecting channels are left free to be formed in any transverse con- `tour which best disposcs of the short nails.

lreferably, the directing members, which eX- tend between the channels, are in the form of partitions projecting from the balancing bar or other reversing device, and since this bar is variable in position for the reason previouslyv given, these projections have an eX- cess of length, which lies over the upper section, being shown as received in depressions therein. Thus the partitions, by their contact with the descending nails at either side, are, for all adjustments of the bar, effective to prevent their tipping laterally until they are received and restrained against movement in this direction by the walls of the intermediate and lower channels. As the upper edges of the directing partitions may act to catch and retain nails, with possible clogging, these edges are preferably inclined rearwardly, and may have conveying channels. JThus nails lodging upon the partitions are conducted back between the bars of the nailway-section for supply.

Irregular action of this type of distributor upper return to the source of may also result from the fact that short nails,

2 .mec/,leo

locity that they do not slide down the curved intermediate channels, but pass nearly or quite over these, and, after striking at the bottom, turn forwardly, their points advancing so they are reversed from the desired direction. It is also true that short nails,which have been acted upon by the balancing bar, may tip in the wrong direction after they have fallen, heads down, from said bar. A further object or" my invention is to prevent this reversal and insure the delivery of all the nails in their correct relation to the channels of the lower nailways. In the accomplishment of this object, I vary a transverse Ydimension of the passage through which nailsk are traveling, providing a member arranged to contact with the upper sides of the nails discharged from the upper section, and to deflect them down upon the lower section. In this way, the velocity of the nails is reduced, or their upper extremities are held back, and they fall into the intermediate ,channels in the longitudinal relation in which they are delivered. As herein illustrated, theA passage-varying contact member is situated below the reversing device, being, more specifically, supported upon it, and may be in the form of depending fingers corresponding to the nailway-grooves. Space is thus given between the lingers to receive the directing partitions for the long nails, it these features be used together. The contact member may be iiXed at diiierent distances from the upper iiailway-section to give its best deflecting effeet, as by an adjustment of the balancing bar or by an independent variation in the position of the member upon said bar.

In the accompanying drawing, in which is disclosed one of the several embodiments which the presentinvention may assume,

Fig. l is a top plan view ot a portion of a nail-distributor at the balancing bar, withV which are associated the elements of this invention;

Fig. 2 is a somewhat enlarged and extended vertical longitudinal section through the mechanism, particularly illustrating the action upon short nails;

Fig. 3 is a similar view at the balancing bar, showing the effect upon long nails;

Fig. a is a perspective view of a portion ofi the more essential elements ot the invention; and

Fig. 5 is a like view of the under side of the balancing bai'.

At l() appears the traine of a nail-distributor carrying a raceway or nailway, consisting of an upper section l2 and a lower 'section 14. both inclined to facilitate the advance of nails to a discharge-roll 16 along longitudinally alined channels in the raceway. These channels may be furnished by grooves formed, in part, in the upper edges or" bars 2- 8 spaced troni one another to permit nails displaced from the groovesl to fall upon a chute 2O and be returned thereby to the naildrum or other source. Joining the upper and lower sections is an intermediate section 22, in wilich the conveying grooves are curved downwardly to best direct the nails in their passage between the main sections. To cause the travel of the nails over the raceway, the frame is oscillated by connections to a power-shaft (not illustrated).

Since it is desired that the nails shall all arrive at the discharge-roll uniformly arranged as to the direction of their heads and points, a reversing device is furnished, as by a balancing bar 26 arranged over the raceway-section 22 at the juncture of the upper and lower main sections, as in the patent previously mentioned. This bar may be adjusted toward and from the upper section by rack-and-pinion mechanism 28 to leave sucha space between the ends of the grooves in said section and the adjacent edge of the bar that nails proceeding heads first willoverbalance and slide down the intermediate grooves without contact with the bar, while those having the lighter points first will bridge the spaceto the bar. Then the heads of these last-mentioned nails leave the upper section, they will tip back upon the curved grooves and vbe reversed, so that upon the lower section all nails will have their heads in advance.

The ygrooves in section 22 are so formed that the short nails, sometimes advancing so rapidly that they tend to overlap as they fall from the upper section andfrom the balancing bai', will have a chance to free themselves, and clogging will be avoided. This is best attainedfby making these grooves of substaiitial width, and of not excessive depth, they being V-shaped in transverse section, with their Sides diverging at a considerable angle. These grooves, however, acting efficiently upon short nails, may be less satisfactory for long nails. As the latter descend into the section 22, striking upon the heads in a nearly upright position, they may tip laterally of the raceway, and, as the walls between l the grooves of this intermediate section are not sutiiciently high nor close enough to the vertical to restrain them, they may fall across the Walls. Here, twisting at various angles and contacting with one another, they may clog. To' prevent this without in any way affecting the feed of short nails, I interpose between each pair .of adjacent grooves of the section 22 directing members in the form of' 'partitions 3). These partitions may be of such vertical dimensions that they will i'etain against lateral tipping all nails not properly held by the groove-walls, as is best shown in connection with the nail N in Fig. 3, and have their lower edges sufficiently spaced from the bottoms of the grooves in Vthe section 22 to avoid interference with short-` nails;V Longitudinally' of the raceway they are best of such length that they will completely bridge the space between the bal- .ancingbar and the section 12. Because the bar is variable in position, I prefer to mount the partitions upon said bar, they being conveniently cast as projections integral with it. These projections are shown as ext-ending into depressions 82 furnished between the bars 18 of the upper section, their length being suc-h that they remain in the depressions for all adjustments of the bar, thus insuring the continuity of the division between the upper portions of the grooves in the section 22.

It has been found that the upper edges of the partitions 30 give surfaces upon which nails may lodge, become crossed and clog. To prevent this, these edges are downwardly inclined at 3l oppositely to the racewaygrooves, and are themselves grooved. Consequently, when nails become displaced from the grooves in the section 12 upon these partitions, the rearward inclination and the oscillation of the mechanism cause the nails to be carried back between the raceway-bars, wasting upon the chute 2O for return to the source and delivery therefrom.

lVhen short nails are thrown heads first from the upper raceway-section, they do not engage the balancing bar for reversal, but are projected beneath the bar to the lower portion of the section 22, there entering the conduit or passage formed between the under wall of said bar and the nailway. Sometimes their velocity under these conditions is sutilcient to cause them to somersault upon their heads and to strike points first, or in the direction opposite to what is desired. To guard against this action, and also a similar reversal of short nails which, in falling heads down from the balancing bar, tilt forwardl Y instead of in the desired longitudinal relation, with the heads in advance, I place in the path of the short nails, so delivered as to be thus reversed, a deflecting member, which is preferably attached to the balancing bar. This member has a body-portion 3G, shown as secured to the under side of the bar by slot-and-screw connections 38, by means of which the deflecting member may be adj usted toward and from the ends of the grooves in the raceway-section 12 independently of the position of the balancing bar under the influence of its controlling' mechanism 2S. Extending' from the body-portion are downwardly and forwardly curved fingers 40 substantially lling the space between the partitions 30, and alined, respectively, with grooves in the section 12. Because of their form and their relation to the ends of the grooves in the upper section, short nails n, which would be overturned as just described, will strike the fingers, as is illustrated in Fig. 2, with the result that the points are held back and the momentum reduced. so that when they fall upon the raceway, they will assume their normal positions, with the points to the rear. Nails traveling at a less velocity, or falling from the balancing bar, will not come under the'infiuence of the defiecting member. If a short nail, proceeding point first and therefore acted upon by the balancing' bar, tends to tip forward when its head strikes the raceway-section 22, its point contacts with the deflecting member and is held back. Therefore, all the nails pass upon the lower section with the heads in advance. liv/*hen the bar is moved away from the upper raceway-section to adapt it for co-operation with long nails, the deflecting' member is so carried away from the section 22 that it has no effect upon such nails.

lWith the organization of this invention, it will be seen that in delivering nails between the upper and lower raceway-sections, all lengths may be operated upon without liability of clogging, and with t-he maintenance of the desired uniform relation of the heads Yand points.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. In a nail-distributor, a nailway having upper and lower sections in which are nailconveying' channels, and members spaced vertically from the lower section and extendingl over the upper section, said members being' arranged to maintain against lateral displacement nails delivered by said upper secadjacent grooved sections, and a nail-reversing' device situated near the juncture of the sections and carrying partitions having grooves upon their upper edges and extending between the raceway-grooves.

5. In a nail-distributor, a raceway having upper and lower grooved sections, and a balancing bar arranged for engagement by nails delivered by the upper section and provided with projections extending over said upper section.

6. In a nail-distributor, a raceway having upper and lower groyoved sections, there being depressions between the grooves of the upper section, and a balancing bar movable toward and from the upper section and arranged for engagement by nails delivered thereby, said bar having projections extending into the raceway-depressions. j Y 7. In a nail-distributor, a nailway having upper and lower sections in which are nailconveying channels, and partitions situated between said channels at the juncture of the sections and provided with nail-conveying channels.

8. In anail-distributor, a nailway having upper and lower sections in which are nailconveying channels, and partitions situated between said channels at the juncture of the sections, the upper edges of the partitions being inclined rearwardly and provided with grooves.

9. In a nail-distributor, a nailway having upperandlowersectionsincludingspacedbars having nail-conveying grooves, andpartitions situated. between the grooves at the juncture of the sections, the upper edges of the partitions being inclined rearwardly and provided with grooves delivering between the bars of the upper sections.

10. In anail-distributor, a nailway having upper and lower sect-ions, there being a passage through which nails travel between the sections, and a member arranged to vary a transverse dimension oi: the passage.

11. In a nail :listributor, a nailway having `upper and lower sections connected by a passage, a member adjustable in the passage and arranged to contact with the upper sides of nails discharged from the upper section and to deflect them downwardly upon the lower section, and means arranged to fix the contact member at diilerent distancesfrom the upper section.

12. In a nail-distributor, a raceway having upper and lower sections, a. nail-reversing device situated near the juncture of the sections,` and a nail-deflecting member situated below the reversing device and adjustable independently of the reversing device.

18. In anail-distributoi, a raceway having upper and lower sections,- a nail-reversing device situated near the juncture ofthe sections and movable with relation thereto, a naibdefiecting member having beneath the reversing device a nail-deflecting surface inclined downwardly and in the direction of advance of the nails over the lower section, and means arranged to move the deflecting member independently of the rever-sing device.-

14. In anail-distributor, agrooved raceway having upper and lower sections, and aI balancingbar located near the end of the upper section and provided with ngers -situated in the paths of the nails discharged from the grooves of said section.

15. In aman-distributor, a raceway having upper and lower sections,- a balancing bar movable toward and from the end of the upper section,l and a nail-deilecting member movable upon the balancing bar. 16. In. a naildistributor, a grooved raceway having` upper andV lower sections, and a balancing. bar locatednear the end of the upper section and provided with nail-directing partitions situated between the raceway grooves and with nail-deiiecting fingers opposite said grooves.

17. In naillistributor, a raceway having upper and lower grooved sections, there being depressions between the grooves of the upper section, and a balancing bar movable toward and from the upper section and arranged or engagement by nails delivered thereby, said bar having nail-directing partitions extending into the raceway-depressions and nail-deiiecting ngers depending from the bar opposite the grooves of the upper section.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ORIN L. SMITH. 

